NOW SWIMMING ON SATURDAY 15TH SEPTEMBER 2018!

Thank you for visiting my page. I’m supporting Sarcoma UK, the only cancer charity in the UK focused on all types of sarcoma (muscle and bone cancer).

I will be (hopefully) completing the Dart 10k - a long distance swim from Totnes to Dittisham down the River Dart. That's around 7 miles of open water swimming with and against the tide. I have never attempted anything like this before so any support you can offer (I'm gonna need it) will be gratefully received. As many of you know I'm not the fittest sausage in the packet...

Anyway, why?? Well in 2007 my dad (Peter Jarvis) was ripped away from our family at the age of 61. He was such a big part of our lives as many dads are, but he was unique to us and is to this day very sorely missed. He was a tireless man who worked purely for his family and friends benefit and not his own. Dad was also generous to others with his time; any problem and he would find the pragmatic solution to help, no matter what it was. He helped so many people in some incredibly vulnerable situations, he really was one of a kind.

My dad died from a very rare muscle cancer known as soft tissue sarcoma which began in his leg. It's a cancer you may not have even heard of because only around 3100 people are diagnosed with it every year in the UK. Of those people many can survive 5 years, but due to several misdiagnosis my dads cancer developed in to something which was the highest grade and very nasty. He managed 2 years of living life to the full before it came back and he developed a slight cough - it was all over 6 months after that. 

This disease is grossly underrepresented because it is rare, this means treatment options are also limited and awareness of it is quite low. Most lumps in your leg do turn out to be nothing to worry about, but the ones that are; can often be mistaken for something more harmless. By donating to this page you will be supporting Sarcoma UK in their mission to raise awareness of this disease by helping patients and doctors recognise symptoms sooner. It will also help fund vital research in to this disabling and deadly disease. It's a fight that can affect anyone as sarcoma knows no bounds like most cancer and can strike at any point in life.

I don't think a day goes by my dad doesn't pop in to my head, but what has gone by is a whole decade. A decade in which I have always wished to do something in his memory but just haven't the strength to do it for so many reasons. Now is the time, and I hope you will help me realise my goal and understand why I have to do this. Any donation no matter how small will be greatly appreciated.

Thanks